Sunday, June 28, 2009
Health care for all by eliminating greed
Letters to the Editor
Recent letters to the editor
- Letters: A home-school mom pays taxes, too
- Pick of the day: Home-schoolers reject public schools
- Pick of the day: Passing the buck won't stop abuse
- Letters archive
From the RoundTable blog
Read the latest entries
Health care for all by eliminating greed
Universal, affordable health care for all Americans is incredibly simple to develop. Simply remove greed from all involved entities.
Care givers do not need unreal profits. These are professionals, hospitals, pharmaceutical industries. In other words, all areas of care-giving. Remove malpractice fears and all above could perform more economically.
The legal profession need not make profits on questionable lawsuits. Malpractice could be made reasonable.
Pharmaceutical industries could become more honest and realistic in providing medications with less profit for themselves.
Congress could become more people-concerned and act for the people, rather than for themselves, party, special-interest groups' lobbyists and so forth.
All the above groups would feel financial pain if the greed were removed, but all could remain comfortably viable.
And all the people of the nation could have health care, probably at far less cost than presently exists.
Could this occur? Could greed be removed? Only if all entities bought into the concept. History does not support the idea of abolishment of greed.
This should be a challenge to the government, the entire health industry, legal profession, pharmaceutical industry and everyone.
Searching in vain for the word search
What happened to the word search puzzle that used to be opposite "Dennis the Menace"? I looked forward to it each weekday. I haven't heard of anyone who likes that new puzzle, Kakuro. Otherwise, your paper is OK.
Not bars; restaurants that serve drinks
Several of your letter writers, as well as your editorial staff, persist in claiming that guns in bars will result in a veritable blood bath in Virginia. This same claim was made (and has been proven erroneous) when the requirements for obtaining a concealed-carry permit were made specific and not left up to the discretion of the issuing authority.
Would someone please point out to these writers that the correct term should be "restaurants that also serve alcoholic beverages?" We don't have bars in Virginia. And the reason I would like to be able to carry my own legally authorized gun in a restaurant is that I am tired of being confined to fast-food restaurants when I want to celebrate a family birthday, anniversary, etc.
While one may not feel there is any danger inside any of our local establishments, I suggest taking a stroll through any restaurant parking lot after dark.
Abortion is never necessary
Re: Paula Doss's letter, "Laws won't stop abortions" (June 20):
I will be the first bleeding heart to get in that line. As I'm taking the baby with one hand, I'll be giving the mother a pack of condoms and birth control pills with the other. With the numerous options for birth control available, I see no reason for so many unwanted pregnancies.
And to be clear, I understand that when a woman is raped, she has no control over whether protection is used. In that case, there are many couples who cannot have children and would love to have those babies.
Abortion is murder, plain and simple.
Obama is showing wise restraint on Iran
Sens. John McCain and Lindsay Graham have lost their memory, which is not surprising.
They criticized President Obama for not taking a stronger stand on Iran or supporting the uprising.
I am sure that all these kids in the streets have a family member who was killed, wounded or handicapped during the seven years of war against Iraq, when the U.S. was supplying Saddam Hussein with weapons and toxic gas. The people have not forgotten the American role during this bloody war.
Obama needs to walk a very thin line. He certainly does not want to see Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government accuse the U.S. once again of backing the people who want the destruction of Iran.
Iranians want to start a dialogue with the U.S., but at very slow pace. This includes Mir Hossein Mousavi, who is an insider and who pushed the shah out. Using the uprising for U.S. political gain is a scandal, and these senators should be ashamed of themselves.
If McCain had won the election, we would have four wars on our hands: Afghanistan, Iraq, North Korea and Iran. Thank God we have a cool president who is thinking before making a decision.
